Going into his 19th playoff run, it’s remarkable that LeBron James is still capable of breaking records. And yet, on Saturday, the league’s greatest scorer and all-time leader in games played collected eight assists in the first quarter in the Lakers’ Game 1 win over the Rockets, a career high for any quarter of a playoff game.
His playmaking and precision set the offensive tone against a high-pressure and physical top-ten regular-season defense.
LeBron has oscillated between the number one through
three offensive options all season for the purple and gold, depending on the health of his star backcourt. Without either, he jumps back to a very familiar spot.
News broke hours before tip-off that superstar Kevin Durant would not play for Houston, joining Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves for LA to sit on the sidelines. Shockingly, the 41-year-old was the healthiest out of the four stars, but age seemed to be just a number during LA’s playoff home opener.
LeBron finished the first half with 10 assists, tying his playoff career high, and ended the game with 13 dimes to go with a stat-stuffing line of 19 points, eight rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot.
The offensive game plan was simple but effective: involve the Rockets’ weakest defenders in as many actions as possible to create an advantage and start the blender. They hunted Houston with LeBron either as a lethal screener or initiator.
Early on, the Rockets looked to hide young guard Reed Sheppard on Marcus Smart. Watch below as Smart sets up to back him down with LeBron first coming over to screen, but decides to back-cut. He catches the pocket pass and throws a wrap-around on the money jump pass through traffic to Rui Hachimura in the corner.
A few possessions later, he and Ayton ran an action in the middle of the floor, attacking the slow-footed backup center, Clint Capela, in the clip below.
His defender chases over the screen, while Capela retreats in drop coverage. No help comes to tag the roll, and it’s an easy touch lob pass for one of the best playmakers ever to his big man for the jam.
”We talked all week about being connected offensively and trust in the pass,” head coach J.J. Redick said postgame. “He led us there in the first half, getting 10 assists, and then was able to make some scoring plays down the stretch. Just a fantastic overall game from him.”
With about five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter and Smart at the helm, watch LeBron delegate and point to every player’s position on the floor. The final hand signals to get Hachimura and Jared Vanderbilt to spread to the corners. He orchestrates with the goal of maximizing space against the Rockets’ 2-3 zone.
Smart finds LeBron on the stampede cut, where he catches it already in motion towards the rim and kicks it back out for the big 3-pointer late in the fourth.
Without Luka and Reaves, the Lakers are not only out on the scoring but are missing 14 assists combined per game. LeBron can’t replace all of it alone, as he’s got many different responsibilities on the team.
Some nights, like Game 1, he will be asked to be a passer and facilitator, while on other nights the Lakers may need him to score. Whichever role it is, he looks primed to be able to fill it.
“For me, I have to do a little bit of everything,” LeBron said postgame. “That’s what the job requires. Just being a triple threat, being able to rebound. Being able to pass, being able to shoot. Also, defend, put myself in a position to where I can bring value to this ball club, bring value to this series. It’s going to be a game to game position to see how the game plays out.”
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